---
title: How much does an answering service cost in 2026?
canonical: "https://lobbystack.com/blog/how-much-does-an-answering-service-cost/"
pubDate: "2026-10-09T13:00:00.000Z"
author: LobbyStack Team
description: "How much does an answering service cost? We priced 15 live services in October 2026: per-minute and per-call rates, monthly bills at 40 to 200 calls, and fees."
categories: [Guides]
---

A live answering service costs $127 to $415 a month for 40 three-minute calls at most vendors that publish prices (checked October 9, 2026). Per-minute plans run about $1 to $5 a minute. Per-call plans charge $2 to $10 a call on plan, up to $11.50 for extra calls. LobbyStack's AI receptionist answers them for $30, without a person.

**Prices checked October 9, 2026** on each vendor's own pricing page, terms and FAQ, in US dollars before tax. LobbyStack wrote this guide and sells an AI receptionist, so it appears as one AI row, listed last.

## How much does an answering service cost per month?

For 40 three-minute calls a month, live plans cost $127 to $599. Most land between $127 and $415. Ruby costs $485: its 100-minute plan plus 20 extra minutes at $4.50. Abby Connect costs $599 because it publishes no overage rate, so the cheapest plan that covers 120 minutes is its 200-minute plan. At 100 calls, bills run $237.50 to $1,380.

For every bill on this page, we take the cheapest plan, or plan plus overage, that covers the minutes. If a vendor publishes no overage rate, we use its cheapest plan that covers the full volume.

### Cost by call volume

The table assumes 3 minutes a call. We chose that length ourselves, with no outside source, so use your own average if you know it.

| Calls a month | Minutes | Live, billed per minute | Live, billed per call | No published overage | LobbyStack (ours, AI) |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 40 | 120 | $127 to $485 | $127 to $415 | Abby Connect $599 | $30 (Starter) |
| 100 | 300 | $325 to $1,160 | $237.50 to $915 | Abby Connect $1,380 | $60 (Starter) |
| 200 | 600 | $599 to $2,125 | $407.50 to $1,965 | No published plan covers it | $118 (Pro) |

- Per-minute ranges cover the eleven per-minute services that publish what extra minutes cost. Per-call ranges cover A Message Center and Smith.ai Virtual Front Desk.
- Ruby sets the top of each per-minute range. Without it, the tops are $307.40 (Moneypenny), $615 and $1,200 (AnswerFirst, priced at its $1.95 high end because it doesn't publish where its rate drops toward $1.60).
- Continental Message Solution bills every 28 days: $300 a cycle at 120 minutes ($325 a month on average) and $575 at 300 minutes ($622.92 on average). Its largest published plan is 500 minutes.
- Davinci Virtual costs $251.50 at 120 minutes (Business 50 plus overage) and charges $95 setup once. Its plan page says 24/7; its FAQ says live receptionists answer 8am to 8pm Eastern on weekdays.
- Posh shows Canadian dollars on the page we could load (CAD 258 at 120 minutes, CAD 630 at 300, CAD 1,170 at 600), so it stays out of the USD ranges.

### What pushes the price up

- **Call count and length.** Minutes are the billing unit at 13 of the 15 services. On a per-minute rate, a 4-minute average call costs a third more than a 3-minute one.
- **Rounding and billable time.** Whole-minute billing can add more than a third to your talk time, and some vendors also bill hold time or after-call notes (see [how answering services count a minute](#how-answering-services-count-a-minute)).
- **Holidays.** Most vendors here charge the same rate at night, but a few add holiday fees.
- **Add-ons and patching.** Smith.ai charges $1.50 more per call for booking. Patching a caller through to you costs $0.10 a minute at Specialty Answering Service and $0.06 at Ambs Call Center.

## What do answering services charge in 2026?

Live answering services sell a monthly bundle of minutes with a per-minute overage, or a bundle of calls with a per-call overage. On the 13 per-minute services below, a fully used bundle works out to $0.95 to $5.00 a minute. The per-call plans come to about $2 to $10 a call. Each vendor name links to its pricing page.

| Vendor | Model | Plans (price / included) | Overage | Effective rate, fully used | Billing increment | Setup fee |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [AnswerNet](https://answeringservicesus.com/pricing/) (prices on AnsweringServicesUS.com) | Per minute | $29 + $1.15/min; $105/100 min; $495/500; $950/1,000 | $1.10, $1.04, $0.99 | $1.05 to $0.95 a minute | Not stated | $0 (waived on Gold and Platinum) |
| [Specialty Answering Service](https://www.specialtyansweringservice.net/pricing/) | Per minute | $44 + $1.54/min; $159/100; $269/220; $649/500; larger plans to 10,000 | $1.44 falling to $1.09 | $1.59 (100 min) to $1.06 (10,000 min) | Per second | $0 |
| [Ambs Call Center](https://www.ambscallcenter.com/answering-service-pricing) | Per minute | $149/100; $330/250; $600/500; larger plans to 2,500 | $1.29 falling to $1.20 | $1.49 (100 min) to $1.18 (2,500 min) | 30 seconds | $85 |
| [The Perfect Answer](https://theperfectanswer.com/pricing/) | Per minute | $47 + $1.37/min; $177/125; $296/225 | $1.30, $1.28 | $1.42 to $1.32 | Whole minute | None, per its cost page |
| [MAP Communications](https://www.mapcommunications.com/pricing/) | Per minute | $49 + $1.37/min; $179/125; $339/250; $649/500 | $1.30, $1.28, $1.28 | $1.43 to $1.30 | Whole minute, after-call work included | Not stated |
| [Answering Service Care](https://answeringservicecare.com/pricing/) | Per minute | $40 + $1.75/min; $179/100; $329/250; $639/500 | $1.70, $1.60, $1.35 | $1.79 to $1.28 | Whole minute, post-call work included | $50 |
| [AnswerFirst](https://answerfirst.com/pricing/) | Per minute | $30 base + $1.60 to $1.95/min; no bundles | Every minute at the usage rate | $1.60 to $1.95, plus the base | Per second | "May apply," no amount |
| [PATLive](https://www.patlive.com/pricing/) | Per minute | $49 + $2.99/min; $99/50; $189/100; $349/200; $479/300; $759/500; up to $6,899/5,000 | $2.29 falling to $1.49 | $1.98 (50 min) to $1.38 (5,000 min) | First minute in full, then 6 seconds | None for answering ("No PATLive fees") |
| [Moneypenny](https://www.moneypenny.com/us/pricing/) (People Answering) | Per minute | $165/50; $265/100; $422/200; $985/500 | $2.28, $2.12, $1.91, $1.67 | $3.30 to $1.97 | Each call to 30 seconds, then the monthly total to a minute | In its terms, no amount |
| [Davinci Virtual](https://www.davincivirtual.com/live-receptionists) | Per minute | Business $129/50, $239/100; Premium $249/50, $319/100 | $1.75 Business, $2.50 Premium | $2.58 to $2.39 (Business), $4.98 to $3.19 (Premium) | Per second | $95 |
| [Abby Connect](https://www.abby.com/pricing/) | Per minute | $165/50; $329/100; $599/200; $1,380/500 | Not published | $3.30 to $2.76 | 30 seconds | None |
| [Ruby](https://www.ruby.com/plans-and-pricing/) | Per minute | $250/50; $395/100; $720/200; $1,210/350; $1,725/500; larger plans to 2,500 | $5.40 falling to $3.30 ([help center](https://rubyhelpcenter.helpjuice.com/billing-plans/am-i-on-the-right-billing-plan), checked October 10, 2026) | $5.00 (50 min) to $3.15 (2,500 min) | 60 seconds, rounded up, after-call notes included | None |
| [Continental Message Solution](https://www.continentalmessage.com/pricing/) | Per minute, billed every 28 days | $150/100; $300/250; $575/500 per 28 days | Not published | $1.50 to $1.15 per 28-day cycle | Not stated | Varies, no amount |
| [Smith.ai Virtual Front Desk](https://smith.ai/pricing/receptionists) (human) | Per call | $300/30 calls; $810/90; $2,100/300 | $11.50, $10.50, $8.50 a call | $10 to $7 a call | Per call | None |
| [A Message Center](https://amessagecenter.com/pricing) | Per call | $47 + $2.00/call; $145/50 calls; $320/150; $490/250 | $1.85, $1.75, $1.65 a call | $2.90 to $1.96 a call | Per call | Not stated |

### Live services that charge by the minute

Thirteen of the 15 services sell minutes. Each has a point in its favor:

- **AnswerNet:** the lowest published entry price ($29) and the lowest overage in the table ($0.99 a minute on Platinum).
- **Specialty Answering Service (SAS):** per-second billing and a 14-day or 200-minute trial with no card.
- **Ambs Call Center:** overage of $1.20 to $1.29 across its plans, and no charge for hold or ring time.
- **The Perfect Answer:** no charge for spam calls, and a 7-day trial with no card.
- **MAP Communications:** the same $1.28 to $1.37 rates as The Perfect Answer with a 500-minute plan added ($649), plus a Roster Service that follows your on-call schedule.
- **Answering Service Care:** up to 10% off for paying a year ahead.
- **AnswerFirst:** per-second billing, no minimum usage, and the same rate at night, on weekends and on holidays.
- **PATLive:** 11 published tiers, 6-second billing after the first minute, and no charge for after-call notes.
- **Moneypenny:** warm call transfers and CRM integrations on every plan.
- **Davinci Virtual:** per-second billing, retroactive plan upgrades to avoid overage, and the option to pair answering with a Davinci virtual office address.
- **Abby Connect:** the same rate on nights, weekends and holidays, and AI minutes count as half when you mix human and AI answering.
- **Ruby:** robocalls its filter sends to voicemail cost nothing, and its app alerts you at 85% and 100% of your minutes.
- **Continental Message Solution:** US-based agents and plan changes with no penalty.

### Live services that charge by the call

- **Smith.ai Virtual Front Desk** charges the same for a 2-minute call as a 12-minute one and doesn't bill spam when Caller ID passes.
- **A Message Center** has the cheapest per-call plans in the table ($47 a month plus $2 a call pay-as-you-go, $1.65 to $1.85 for extra calls on its bundles). It runs an HVAC-specific service with US-based agents.

### Services that only give quotes

- **[AnswerConnect](https://www.answerconnect.com/view-pricing):** quote only. A 2025 price sheet that AnswerConnect hosts lists $350 for 200 minutes, $2.50 a minute after that and a $49.99 setup fee. The sheet is a year old and names no currency.
- **[Nexa](https://www.nexa.com/plans/):** price on request for its 100, 300 and 500-minute plans. Nexa says a setup fee applies but gives no amount.
- **[Posh](https://posh.com/en-ca/pricing/):** CAD only on the page we could load, from CAD 65 plus CAD 2.30 a minute up to CAD 1,900 for 1,000 minutes. We couldn't verify its US prices.

### Where an AI answering service fits

| Plan | Price / included | Overage | Effective rate, fully used | Billing increment | Setup fee |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [LobbyStack Starter](/pricing/) (ours) | $30 / 150 min | $0.20/min | $0.20 a minute | Counted in seconds | None |

This guide prices live services, so LobbyStack is the only AI row. For other AI receptionists, see [what AI receptionists cost and save](/blog/ai-receptionist-savings/).

### How we checked these prices

- We read each vendor's own pricing page on October 9, 2026, plus its terms or FAQ for billing rules, and list prices in US dollars before tax. For French providers priced in euros, see [outsourced phone answering in France](/blog/outsourced-phone-answering-france/).
- Computed bills assume 3 minutes a call, which is our assumption. Effective rate means plan price divided by included minutes or calls.
- Bills cover plan and overage. Setup, holiday and telecom fees, taxes and rounding come on top, and the [fees table](#what-fees-do-answering-services-charge-on-top-of-the-plan) lists them.
- We'll refresh the prices each quarter and update the date at the top.
- LobbyStack wrote this guide and sells an AI receptionist. To choose on more than price, read our guide to the [best answering service for small business](/blog/best-answering-service-for-small-business/). We left out medical and HIPAA answering services.

## Is it cheaper to pay per minute or per call?

A per-call plan costs less when your average call runs longer than its price per call divided by the per-minute rate you'd pay instead. Against PATLive's 100-minute plan, Smith.ai's $10 calls win past about 5.3 minutes. A Message Center's $2.90 calls win past about 1.8 to 2.8 minutes against per-minute rates of $1.05 to $1.59.

### The break-even call length

1. Take the price per call: $10 on Smith.ai's Starter plan ($300 for 30 calls).
2. Take the per-minute rate you'd pay instead: $1.89 on PATLive's 100-minute plan ($189 for 100 minutes).
3. Divide the first by the second: $10 / $1.89 = 5.3 minutes.
4. If your average call runs longer than that, the per-call plan costs less.

| Per-call price | Per-minute price | Break-even call length |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Smith.ai Starter, $10 a call | PATLive 100-minute plan, $1.89 a minute | About 5.3 minutes |
| Smith.ai Starter, $10 a call | Ruby 100-minute plan, $3.95 a minute | About 2.5 minutes |
| A Message Center Standard, $2.90 a call | AnswerNet Silver $1.05 to SAS 100-minute $1.59 a minute | About 1.8 to 2.8 minutes |

Per-call pricing can be the cheap option. At 50 three-minute calls, A Message Center's Standard plan costs $145, and the cheapest per-minute bill for the same 150 minutes is $160 at AnswerNet.

### Why the smallest plan costs the most per minute

At most vendors, bundles get cheaper per minute as they grow. Ruby drops from $5.00 a minute on 50 minutes to $3.45 on 500, Moneypenny from $3.30 to $1.97, and PATLive from $1.98 to $1.52.

Pay-as-you-go plans charge a base fee plus every minute: AnswerNet $29 plus $1.15, AnswerFirst $30 plus $1.60 to $1.95, SAS $44 plus $1.54, The Perfect Answer $47 plus $1.37 and PATLive $49 plus $2.99. At 30 minutes a month, you'd pay AnswerNet $63.50 with the base fee, or $2.12 a minute.

### How answering services count a minute

Two vendors with the same rate can send different bills because each rounds calls its own way. The table bills one call of 2 minutes and 10 seconds under each rule.

| Billing rule | Vendors | One 2:10 call bills as | 40 such calls bill as |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Whole minute, rounded up | Ruby, The Perfect Answer, MAP, Answering Service Care | 3 minutes | 120 minutes |
| 30-second steps | Abby Connect, Ambs, Moneypenny | 2.5 minutes | 100 minutes |
| First minute in full, then 6 seconds | PATLive | 2.2 minutes | 88 minutes |
| Per second | SAS, AnswerFirst, Davinci | About 2.17 minutes | About 87 minutes |
| Seconds, no round-up | LobbyStack (ours) | About 2.17 minutes | About 87 minutes |
| Per call | Smith.ai, A Message Center | 1 call | 40 calls |
| Not stated | AnswerNet, Continental | Not stated | Not stated |

By our math, 40 calls of 2:10 add up to about 87 minutes of talk. Whole-minute billing turns that into 120 billed minutes, 38% more.

Some vendors bill more than talk time. Ruby counts hold time and after-call notes. PATLive counts hold time while the receptionist looks something up, but not queue time or after-call notes. MAP and Answering Service Care bill after-call work, and Moneypenny bills up to 180 seconds of wrap-up a call. Ambs doesn't bill hold or ring time.

Spam varies too. Three vendors keep spam off the bill: Smith.ai when Caller ID passes, The Perfect Answer for spam calls, and Ruby for robocalls its filter sends to voicemail. Ambs says solicitor calls and hang-ups use plan minutes. The other vendors don't say.

LobbyStack counts usage in seconds and doesn't round a call up to a minute, so a 90-second call uses 1.5 minutes. Calls under 10 seconds and calls the receptionist ends as spam don't count; a call of 10 seconds or more counts in full.

## How much does an answering service cost for a small business?

Our three worked bills, for a solo plumber, a salon and an HVAC shop, come to $127 to $915 a month at live services, depending on call length and billing model. The same calls cost $30 to $48 on LobbyStack's AI plan. Each bill uses the cheapest plan that covers the minutes, overage included.

### A solo plumber: 40 calls a month

A solo plumber can't answer from under a sink, so the service takes the calls. Assumptions: 40 calls a month, 3 minutes each, 120 minutes in all.

| Service | Plan used | Monthly bill |
| --- | --- | --- |
| AnswerNet | Silver: $105 + 20 minutes at $1.10 | $127 |
| A Message Center | Pay-as-you-go: $47 + 40 calls at $2.00 | $127 |
| Ambs Call Center | 100 minutes: $149 + 20 at $1.29 | $174.80, plus $85 setup once |
| Specialty Answering Service | 100 minutes: $159 + 20 at $1.44 | $187.80 |
| PATLive | 100 minutes: $189 + 20 at $2.09 | $230.80 |
| Smith.ai Virtual Front Desk | Starter: $300 + 10 calls at $11.50 | $415 |
| Ruby | 100 minutes: $395 + 20 at $4.50 | $485 |
| LobbyStack Starter (ours, AI) | 150 minutes included | $30 |

### A salon: 100 short booking calls

A stylist with a client in the chair lets the phone ring. Assumptions: 100 calls a month, 2 minutes each, 200 minutes in all.

| Service | Plan used | Monthly bill |
| --- | --- | --- |
| AnswerNet | Silver: $105 + 100 minutes at $1.10 | $215 |
| A Message Center | Standard: $145 + 50 calls at $1.85 | $237.50 |
| Specialty Answering Service | 220 minutes | $269 |
| The Perfect Answer | Business: $177 + 75 minutes at $1.30 | $274.50 |
| PATLive | 200 minutes | $349 |
| Ruby | 200 minutes | $720 |
| Smith.ai Virtual Front Desk | Basic: $810 + 10 calls at $10.50 | $915 |
| LobbyStack Starter (ours, AI) | $30 + 50 minutes at $0.20 | $40 |

Short calls make $10-a-call pricing the most expensive option here. If Smith.ai's receptionists book every appointment, the $1.50 booking add-on costs another $150.

### An HVAC shop: 60 after-hours calls

A no-heat call on a winter night can't wait for morning. Assumptions: 60 calls a month on nights and weekends, 4 minutes each, 240 minutes in all.

| Service | Plan used | Monthly bill |
| --- | --- | --- |
| A Message Center | Standard: $145 + 10 calls at $1.85 | $163.50 |
| AnswerNet | Silver: $105 + 140 minutes at $1.10 | $259, plus $10 per holiday |
| Specialty Answering Service | 220 minutes: $269 + 20 at $1.44 | $297.80 |
| The Perfect Answer | Enterprise: $296 + 15 minutes at $1.28 | $315.20, plus $0.024 a call in telecom fees and a holiday fee on 7 holidays (amount not stated) |
| PATLive | 200 minutes: $349 + 40 at $1.99 | $428.60 |
| Smith.ai Virtual Front Desk | Starter: $300 + 30 calls at $11.50 | $645 |
| LobbyStack Starter (ours, AI) | $30 + 90 minutes at $0.20 | $48 |

At 4 minutes a call, A Message Center beats every per-minute plan. Smith.ai still costs more, since its $10 calls beat PATLive's rate only past about 5.3 minutes. A Message Center's FAQ mentions possible extra charges for holidays, outcalls and call patching, with no amounts.

We left Davinci Virtual out because its FAQ gives weekday live hours. Compare coverage options on our [after-hours answering service](/solutions/after-hours-answering-service/) page, and dispatch features in [HVAC answering services compared](/blog/best-hvac-answering-services/).

## What fees do answering services charge on top of the plan?

Setup fees run $0 to $95 among the vendors that state an amount, well under the "$50 to $500" range some AI chat answers give. On top of setup, check for holiday fees, a per-call telecom fee, call patching charges and per-call add-ons such as booking. Most services bill month to month with a notice period.

| Fee | Amount found | Vendors that list it | Vendors that state none |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Setup, one time | $50 to $95 | Davinci $95, Ambs $85, Answering Service Care $50 (AnswerConnect's 2025 sheet: $49.99). AnswerFirst, Moneypenny, Continental and Nexa mention one without an amount | SAS, Smith.ai, Abby Connect, Ruby, AnswerNet, The Perfect Answer, PATLive ($50 only to turn on texting) |
| Cancellation notice | 30 days to one billing period | Davinci 30 days; Moneypenny one calendar month; The Perfect Answer and MAP one month before the next invoice; Answering Service Care one billing period; Ambs 30 days after an unstated minimum term | Ruby, PATLive and Smith.ai end service at the close of the current cycle |
| Holiday fee | $10 per holiday | AnswerNet (not on Platinum). The Perfect Answer and MAP charge one on 7 holidays, amount not stated | PATLive, Ruby, Abby Connect, AnswerFirst, Ambs, Answering Service Care; Smith.ai charges the same 24/7 |
| Telecom fee | $0.024 a call | The Perfect Answer, MAP. Moneypenny passes regulatory fees through | Not stated elsewhere |
| Call patching | $0.06 to $0.10 a minute | Ambs $0.06, SAS $0.10. A Message Center mentions a charge without an amount | Not stated elsewhere |
| Per-call add-ons | $1.00 to $1.50 a call | Smith.ai: booking $1.50, complex routing $1.50, dedicated Spanish line $1.00 | Not listed elsewhere |
| Spanish-speaking agents | $0 at most; $1.00 a call at Smith.ai | Smith.ai +$1.00 a call; AnswerConnect from $30 a month (2025 sheet) | Included at Ruby, PATLive, Abby Connect, Ambs, The Perfect Answer, MAP, Moneypenny, Answering Service Care |
| 28-day billing | 13 bills a year | Continental Message Solution | The other vendors price by the month |
| LobbyStack (ours) | $0.02 per extra SMS segment or transfer attempt | Usage beyond the plan's allowances | No setup fee on any plan, no cancellation fees, no language add-on in its pricing |

### Setup fees, contracts and notice periods

Davinci's $95 is the highest setup fee in the table. Most plans run month to month, so compare notice periods instead of contract terms: Davinci wants 30 days and Moneypenny one calendar month.

### Holiday, telecom and call-patching fees

The Perfect Answer's and MAP's terms add $0.024 to every call, or $2.40 on 100 calls. SAS shows holiday and weekend fee lines on its pricing page, but we couldn't read the amounts. SAS also bills IVR and voicemail time at $0.15 a minute.

### Add-ons: booking, routing and Spanish-speaking agents

Smith.ai prices extras per call: $1.50 for booking, $1.50 for complex routing and $1.00 for a dedicated Spanish line. Eight of the per-minute services include Spanish-speaking agents in the plan price.

On LobbyStack, each call opens in the business's default language: English, French, Spanish, Serbian, German, Brazilian Portuguese, Italian or Dutch. The receptionist then answers in the caller's language: 70+ languages on OpenAI GPT-Live, including Spanish and Serbian. LobbyStack's pricing lists no language add-on.

### 28-day billing cycles

Continental Message Solution bills every 28 days, so you pay 13 bills a year. Its $150 plan costs $1,950 a year, or $162.50 a month on average.

LobbyStack bills monthly or yearly, with no setup fee on any plan and no cancellation fees. You cancel from billing settings. Owners and admins can set an optional monthly overage cap; there's none by default. Once spending hits the cap, new calls get a busy signal until the next month or until you raise or remove it.

## How do you estimate your own answering service bill?

Start with four numbers from last month's call history: calls, talk minutes, the after-hours share and the spam count. Decide which calls a person must take. Then price those minutes on a per-minute plan, a per-call plan and a bundle with overage, and add rounding and fees.

### Step 1: Pull last month's call log

From your phone provider's call history, note total calls, total talk minutes, the share that came after hours, and how many were spam or hang-ups.

### Step 2: Mark the calls a person must take

Split routine calls (booking, hours, quotes) from calls that need judgment, like complaints or emergencies. An AI receptionist can take the routine ones. Count the judgment calls to decide whether you need a live service.

### Step 3: Price your minutes on each plan

Run your minutes through a per-minute plan, a per-call plan and a bundle with overage. The [break-even formula](#the-break-even-call-length) shows which model suits your average call length.

### Step 4: Add rounding and fees

Under whole-minute billing, add about half a minute per call as a rough estimate. Then add setup, holiday, telecom and add-on fees from the [fees table](#what-fees-do-answering-services-charge-on-top-of-the-plan). The [three worked bills](#how-much-does-an-answering-service-cost-for-a-small-business) show the method end to end.

## Is an AI answering service cheaper than a live one?

Per minute, yes. LobbyStack Starter works out to $0.20 a minute, the same as its overage rate, against about $1 to $5 a minute on the live plans above. You give up a person on the line. The AI answers from your knowledge base, books appointments, takes messages and transfers callers to your team.

### The same calls on an AI plan

LobbyStack costs $30 at 40 calls, $60 at 100 calls and $118 at 200 calls (Pro, $100 for 500 minutes plus $0.18 a minute). The three worked bills come to $30, $40 and $48. On annual billing, Starter costs $24 a month.

Starter includes 150 minutes, one business number in the US, Canada, the UK, Australia or New Zealand, booking into Google Calendar, and confirmation and 24-hour reminder texts to US and Canadian numbers. It also includes 20 transfer attempts a month, then $0.02 each.

Plans don't limit how many calls the receptionist answers at once. Calls open in your default language (English, French, Spanish, Serbian, German, Brazilian Portuguese, Italian or Dutch), and the receptionist then answers in the caller's language (70+ languages). You keep your number by forwarding it, and your carrier's forwarding rule decides whether LobbyStack takes overflow, after-hours or every call.

### What you give up without a live agent

- Transfers are blind, to one number you set. Without one, the receptionist takes a message.
- The AI doesn't reply to texts.
- Google Calendar is the only calendar. For a CRM or practice software, you use webhooks and the REST API.
- LobbyStack makes no HIPAA claim, and a phone call ends at 30 minutes.
- The Free plan includes a US or Canadian number for 14 days. After that, you test in the browser.

A live service is the better buy when you want a person on every call or your callers won't talk to an AI. Live agents also suit upset callers and sensitive subjects, and some vendors offer warm handoffs (Moneypenny) and on-call rosters (MAP's Roster Service, A Message Center's on-call technicians). For other AI vendors' prices and the cost of hiring, see [what AI receptionists cost and save](/blog/ai-receptionist-savings/).

## Is an answering service worth it?

An answering service is worth it when the jobs you win from answered calls bring in more profit than the monthly bill. Multiply the missed calls you'd answer by the share that would book and your profit per job, then compare the result with the plan price for your call volume.

### The worth-it math in one line

**Missed calls × share that would book × profit per job ≥ monthly bill**

In this example, every input is our assumption. Answering the calls you now miss wins you 2 extra jobs a month at $300 profit each, or $600. That covers every live bill in the 40-call row. Ruby's $485 leaves $115, and Abby Connect's $599, the highest, leaves $1. LobbyStack Starter costs $30 for the same calls. Try your own numbers in the [missed call revenue calculator](/missed-call-revenue-calculator/).

### When a live service is the better buy

Pick a live service when every call needs a person, when calls are sensitive or complex, when your callers expect a human, or when you need warm transfers and on-call dispatch.

### When it costs more than it saves

A service loses money when each job is worth too little for a few extra bookings to cover the bill. It also loses money when per-call pricing meets many short, routine calls. The salon's 100 two-minute calls cost $915 on Smith.ai and $215 at AnswerNet.

## Do people still use answering services?

Yes. Every live vendor in our table listed current plans on its site when we checked in October 2026. [Automated answering services](/blog/automated-answering-service/) and AI receptionists now sit next to them and can take overflow or routine calls while people handle the rest. If you're new to the category, start with [what a phone answering service is and how it works](/blog/what-is-a-phone-answering-service/).

### What does an answering service operator do?

An operator answers your calls in your business name, takes messages, screens and routes calls, and patches callers through to you or your team. On some plans, operators also book appointments in your calendar or scheduling software.

## Questions about answering service cost

### What is the cheapest answering service?

The lowest published live entry price is AnswerNet's $29 a month plus $1.15 a minute, sold on AnsweringServicesUS.com. AnswerFirst follows at $30 plus $1.60 to $1.95 a minute. At 40 three-minute calls, the cheapest live bills are $127 at AnswerNet and A Message Center. LobbyStack's AI receptionist covers those calls for $30.

For pay-as-you-go plans side by side, see the [cheapest way to have a real person answer the phone](/blog/best-answering-service-for-small-business/).

### How much does an answering service cost per call?

Smith.ai's human plans work out to $7 to $10 a call, with extra calls at $8.50 to $11.50. A Message Center charges $2 a call on its $47 pay-as-you-go plan and $1.96 to $2.90 on its bundles. At 3 minutes a call, the per-minute plans in our table come to about $3 to $15 a call.

### How much does an after-hours answering service cost?

Most vendors in our table charge the same rate at night and on weekends, so an after-hours call costs what a daytime call costs. Holidays vary: AnswerNet adds $10 per holiday, and The Perfect Answer and MAP charge an unstated fee on 7 holidays. Davinci's FAQ lists weekday live hours only. See our [after-hours answering service](/solutions/after-hours-answering-service/) page.

### Do answering services charge for spam calls?

It depends on the vendor. Smith.ai leaves spam off the bill when Caller ID passes, The Perfect Answer doesn't charge for spam calls, and Ruby doesn't charge for robocalls its filter sends to voicemail. Ambs Call Center says solicitor calls and hang-ups use plan minutes. LobbyStack doesn't count calls under 10 seconds or calls it ends as spam.

### Do answering services require a contract?

Most live services in our table bill month to month, with a notice period in place of a long contract. Davinci asks for 30 days' notice, Moneypenny one calendar month, The Perfect Answer and MAP one month before the next invoice, and Answering Service Care one billing period. Ruby, PATLive and Smith.ai stop at the end of the current cycle.

## Price your calls before you pick a plan

Multiply your monthly calls by your average call length, then find the closest minutes row in the volume table. That row shows each billing model's cost before you call a vendor.

If the AI row fits, [LobbyStack pricing](/pricing/) starts at $30 a month for 150 minutes, then $0.20 a minute. Pro costs $100 for 500 minutes, then $0.18. No plan has a setup fee. The Free plan gives you 30 voice minutes a month to test your hardest calls, and a US or Canadian number free for 14 days. It needs no card. [Create a free account](https://app.lobbystack.com/en/signup).